Suchergebnisse

"Ballot box voting is often considered the essence of political freedom. But it has two major shortcomings: individual voters have only a tiny chance of making a difference, and they also have strong incentives to remain ignorant about the issues at stake. "Voting with your feet" is far superior on both counts. In Free to Move, Ilya Somin explains who expanding foot voting opportunities can greatly enhance political freedom for millions of people around the world. That applies to foot voting in federal systems, foot voting in the private sector, and especially foot voting through international migration. These three types of foot voting are rarely considered together. But Somin explains how they have major common virtues, and can be mutually reinforcing. Free to Move addresses a variety of objections to expanded migration rights, including claims that the "self-determination" of natives requires giving the power to exclude migrants, and arguments that migration is likely to have harmful side effects, such as undermining political institutions, overburdening the welfare state, increasing crime and terrorism, and spreading undesirable cultural values. While these objections are usually directed at international migration, Somin shows how a consistent commitment to such theories would also justify severe restrictions on internal freedom of movement. That implication is yet another reason to be skeptical of such arguments. The book also shows how both domestic constitutional systems and international law can be structured to increase opportunities for foot voting, while mitigating potential downsides of freedom of movement."--

Ballot box voting is often considered the essence of political freedom. But, it has two major shortcomings: individual voters have little chance of making a difference, and they also face strong incentives to remain ignorant about the issues at stake. 'Voting with your feet'. however, avoids both of these pitfalls and offers a wider range of choices. In 'Free to Move', Ilya Somin explains how broadening opportunities for foot voting can greatly enhance political liberty for millions of people around the world.

"The triumph of the Bolsheviks in the Russian Civil War was the first great crack in the system of international relations established by the victorious Allies. The presence of a powerful anti-Western Soviet regime not only undermined the liberal values binding the signatories and member states of the Versailles Treaty and the League of Nations, but also helped to stimulate the rise of aggressive fascist dictatorships in Germany and Italy. Consequently, the failure of the Allies to intervene effectively against the Bolsheviks helped pave the way for both World War II and the human catastrophe of Soviet totalitarianism. Stillborn Crusade is a reinterpretation of the causes and consequences of that failure. In sharp contrast with previous researchers, Ilya Somin argues that the West's failure resulted not from constraints limiting the options of policymakers, but from ideological misconceptions, particularly those flowing from the "liberal" and "realist" theories of international politics. The liberal view, based on the right of national self-determination, was espoused by Woodrow Wilson, and David Lloyd George. While unsympathetic to Bolshevism, they remained wedded to preconceived ideas on revolution, intervention, and the efficacy of force. The realists thought that the opposing Whites might constitute a greater threat to Western interests; they discounted the role of ideology in Soviet foreign policy. Against these views, Somin sets the position of Winston Churchill, who repeatedly and unsuccessfully urged decisive action when the Soviet regime was militarily vulnerable. As a consequence of British and American policy failures, the entire course of European and world history was radically altered for the worse. Stillborn Crusade also considers why earlier scholars, most notably George F. Kennan and William Appleman Williams, have ignored the issues raised here, even though they and others have not hesitated to criticize Western leaders for similar errors in other instances, especially in the case of Nazi Germany. Somin links the errors of 1918-20 to broader issues relating to the morality, feasibility, and desirability of Western, especially American, intervention in foreign civil conflicts. As a volume with important lessons for our own time, Stillborn Crusade will be of interest to historians, political scientists, and foreign policy analysts."--Provided by publisher.

The extent of political ignorance -- Do voters know enough? -- The rationality of political ignorance -- The shortcomings of shortcuts -- Foot voting vs. ballot box voting -- Political ignorance and judicial review -- Can voter knowledge be increased?

Abstract
Much of the debate over the justice of immigration restrictions focuses on their impact on would-be migrants. Restrictionists often focus on potentially harmful effects of immigration on residents of receiving countries. This article cuts across this long-standing debate by outlining ways in which immigration restrictions inflict harm on natives, specifically by undermining their economic liberty. It covers both the libertarian "negative" view of economic freedom and the "positive" version advanced by left-liberals. Section 1 focuses on "negative" economic freedom. It shows that migration restrictions massively restrict the negative economic liberty of natives. Section 2 takes up "positive" theories of economic freedom; here, too, there are massive effects. Finally, section 3 describes how to address potentially harmful side effects of migration that might undermine economic liberty.